Adult (>18 years old) exposure to pornographic media is connected with:

1. Greater acceptance of sex before marriage
2. Having more sex partners
3. Rating their partners as less attractive
4. Being less satisfied with their partners sexual performance
5. Greater desire for sex without emotional involvement
6. More sex callousness
7. Trying to get partners to act out scenes from pornographic films
8. Increasing their estimates of how often people engage in sex with animals
9. Increasing their estimates of how often people engage in sex with violence
10. Increasing their estimates of how often people engage in sex in groups
11. Going to prostitutes
12. Greater acceptance of sex outside of marriage for married individuals
13. More likely to have an affair
14. Using more sexual terms to describe women
15. Reduced support for the women’s liberation movement
16. Less child centeredness during marriage
17. Reduced desire for female children
18. Believing that you don’t need to restrict pornography from children
19. More alcohol use
20. More binge drinking
21. Engaging in more behavioral aggression
22. Engaging in marital rape

Studies Supporting These Points

 

1. Greater acceptance of sex before marriage

Carroll, J. S., Padilla-Walker, L. M., Nelson, L. J., Olson, C. D., Barry, C. M., & Madsen, S. (2008). Generation XXX: Pornography acceptance and use among emerging adults. Journal of Adolescent Research, 23, 1, 6-30.

 

2. Having more sex partners

Carroll, J. S., Padilla-Walker, L. M., Nelson, L. J., Olson, C. D., Barry, C. M., & Madsen, S. (2008). Generation XXX: Pornography acceptance and use among emerging adults. Journal of Adolescent Research, 23, 1, 6-30.

 

3. Rating their partners as less attractive

Weaver, J., Masland, J. L., & Zillmann, D. (1984). Effect of erotica on young men’s aesthetic perception of their female sexual partners. Perceptual and Motor Skills, 58, 929-930.

Zillmann, D. & Bryant, J. (1988). Pornography’s impact on sexual satisfaction.  Journal of Applied Social Psychology, 18, 438-453.

 

4. Being less satisfied with their partners sexual performance

Zillmann, D. & Bryant, J. (1988). Pornography’s impact on sexual satisfaction.  Journal of Applied Social Psychology, 18, 438-453.

 

5. Greater desire for sex without emotional involvement

Zillmann, D. & Bryant, J. (1988). Pornography’s impact on sexual satisfaction.  Journal of Applied Social Psychology, 18, 438-453.

 

6. More sex callousness

Zillmann, D & J. Bryant. (1984). Effects of massive exposure to pornography. In Malamuth, N and Donnerstein, E. (Eds), Pornography and sexual aggression. San Diego, Academic Press.

 

7. Trying to get partners to act out scenes from pornographic films

Cramer, E. & McFarlane, J. (1994). Pornography and abuse of women. Public Health Nursing, 11, 4, 268-272.

 

8. Increasing their estimates of how often people engage in sex with animals

Zillmann, D & J. Bryant. (1984). Effects of massive exposure to pornography. In Malamuth, N and Donnerstein, E. (Eds), Pornography and sexual aggression. San Diego, Academic Press.

 

9. Increasing their estimates of how often people engage in sex with violence

Zillmann, D & J. Bryant. (1984). Effects of massive exposure to pornography. In Malamuth, N and Donnerstein, E. (Eds), Pornography and sexual aggression. San Diego, Academic Press.

 

10. Increasing their estimates of how often people engage in sex in groups

Zillmann, D & J. Bryant. (1984). Effects of massive exposure to pornography. In Malamuth, N and Donnerstein, E. (Eds), Pornography and sexual aggression. San Diego, Academic Press.

 

11. Going to prostitutes

Monto, M. (1999). Focusing on the clients of street prostitutes: a creative approach to reducing violence against women. Final report for the National Institute of Justice. Available at www.ncjrs.org.

Stack, S., Wasserman, I. & Kern, R. (2004). Adult Social Bonds and Use of Internet Pornography. Social Science Quarterly, 85, 75-88.

 

12. Greater acceptance of sex outside of marriage for married individuals

Carroll, J. S., Padilla-Walker, L. M., Nelson, L. J., Olson, C. D., Barry, C. M., & Madsen, S. (2008). Generation XXX: Pornography acceptance and use among emerging adults. Journal of Adolescent Research, 23, 1, 6-30.

 

13. More likely to have an affair

Stack, S., Wasserman, I. & Kern, R. (2004). Adult Social Bonds and Use of Internet Pornography. Social Science Quarterly, 85, 75-88.

 

14. Using more sexual terms to describe women

Frable, D. E. S., Johnson, A. E. & Kellman, H. (1997). Seeing masculine men, sexy women and gender differences:  Exposure to pornography and cognitive constructs of gender. Journal of Personality, 65, 311-355.

 

15. Reduced support for the women’s liberation movement

Zillmann, D & J. Bryant. (1984). Effects of massive exposure to pornography. In Malamuth, N and Donnerstein, E. (Eds), Pornography and sexual aggression. San Diego, Academic Press.

 

16. Less child centeredness during marriage

Carroll, J. S., Padilla-Walker, L. M., Nelson, L. J., Olson, C. D., Barry, C. M., & Madsen, S. (2008). Generation XXX: Pornography acceptance and use among emerging adults. Journal of Adolescent Research, 23, 1, 6-30.

 

17. Reduced desire for female children

Zillmann, D. (1989). The effects of prolonged consumption of pornography. In D. Zillmann & J. Bryant (Eds.), Pornography: Research Advances and Policy Considerations  (pp. 127-158). Hillsdale, NJ: Erlbaum.

 

18. Believing that you don’t need to restrict pornography from children

Zillmann, D & J. Bryant. (1984). Effects of massive exposure to pornography. In Malamuth, N and Donnerstein, E. (Eds), Pornography and sexual aggression. San Diego, Academic Press.

 

19. More alcohol use

Carroll, J. S., Padilla-Walker, L. M., Nelson, L. J., Olson, C. D., Barry, C. M., & Madsen, S. (2008). Generation XXX: Pornography acceptance and use among emerging adults. Journal of Adolescent Research, 23, 1, 6-30.

 

20. More binge drinking

Carroll, J. S., Padilla-Walker, L. M., Nelson, L. J., Olson, C. D., Barry, C. M., & Madsen, S. (2008). Generation XXX: Pornography acceptance and use among emerging adults. Journal of Adolescent Research, 23, 1, 6-30.

 

21. Engaging in more behavioral aggression

Donnerstein, E. (1984). Pornography: Its effects on violence against women.  In N. Malamuth and E. Donnerstein (Eds) Pornography and Sexual Aggression.  New York: Academic Press.

Allen, M., D’Allessio, D., & Brezgel, K. (1995). A metal-analysis summarizing the effects of pornography II: Aggression after exposure. Human Communication Research, 22, 258-283.

 

22. Engaging in marital rape

Simmons, C. A., Lehmann, P. & Collier-Tennison, S. (2008). Linking male use of the sex industry to controlling behaviors in violent relationships: An exploratory analysis. Violence Against Women, 14, 406-417.

 

Compiled by Mary Anne Layden, PhD

Director, Sexual Trauma and Psychopathology Program Center for Cognitive Therapy, University of Pennsylvania